


No Time

by kronette



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-02
Updated: 2013-01-02
Packaged: 2017-11-23 08:19:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/620021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kronette/pseuds/kronette
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bashir's past comes back to haunt him during a tough medical case.</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Time

**Author's Note:**

> This was published in the zine "Dr. Julian Bashir, This is Your Life" in 1995.

He squinted at the bit of flesh, trying to pick out the shards of bone that were still left. Not only had that bulkhead blown apart, but it had to go and take a few technicians with it. Doctor Julian Bashir still had to get to Ensign T'sar and that new Lieutenant he hadn't caught the name of, but this patient came first. After all, he needed him to play racquetball with.

"Is it...will it..." Chief Miles O'Brien muttered as Julian continued the scan of his leg.

Julian was so intent on retrieving the tiny fracture of bone that at first, the Chief's question didn't register. As it slowly penetrated his concentration, without glancing up, he assured him, "As soon as I get this last bit Chief, you'll be back at work in a day or two. And I'll be beating you at racquetball the week after." He thought he heard a faint, "not bloody likely," and bit back a grin. Julian had learned a long time ago that the Chief hated to lose, but he hated to win falsely even worse. Besides, all the games they played while Keiko was away were improving him.

Julian got the last bit and, after doing a microscan to confirm it, grabbed the regenerator and started to heal the tissues and muscle. "Chief, hold still. I have to regenerate a bit of bone here; it should only take a minute."

Miles lay back, too disgusted with himself to watch as Julian fixed his crushed leg. He should have seen that the bulkhead was straining; but no, he was concentrating on Keiko's last message to him, and hadn't been paying attention to what he was supposed to be doing. _Another false move like that, O'Brien, and next time, maybe you'll accidentally blow yourself out an airlock_.

Julian finished sealing the wound and put the instruments back on the table behind him. "Chief, you'll have to stay here until at least tomorrow. I'll see how your leg is doing then," Julian instructed him.

"How are T'sar and Langton?" Miles asked him, casting a worried glance their way.

T'sar was holding up remarkably well, as his Vulcan self-healing was taking over. Julian knew he could only help him in some small way. But Langton was another story. He remained stubbornly unconscious. "My nurses have been working on them. I'm sure they're fine, Chief," Julian assured him again and moved off. He let his worry show for the first time; it would accomplish nothing if Miles saw it. He reached the biobed that held Langton and looked down at the young Re'Myrtan's face. But he didn't see Langton; he saw a little girl's face looking up at him from a dirt-covered floor. He shook the image and bent to work.

Four hours later, Langton had shown no signs of improvement. He wasn't responding to the regeneration, the cortical stimulators, or any other treatment Julian thought of. His heart rate had dropped to almost nothing; his skin was warm to the touch-unusual for his race, yet his injuries weren't that severe. He had received a mild concussion, but neither of his antennae were affected. Julian hadn't had time to read the Re'Myrtan's file; not with the problems the station had been having the past month. Julian doubted he had gotten more than three hours of sleep a night the entire week. Maybe he had missed something on his quick glance at the file before operating. He went to his office and called up the Re'Myrtan's file, settling himself down for a long afternoon.

***

Julian could barely focus on the readouts in front of him. The words swam before him; he rubbed his stinging eyes to clear them. He hadn't read anything of importance in the file, but he might have missed something again. With a sigh, he went back to the beginning. The computer announced someone had come into the Infirmary, causing him to lose what little concentration he had left. _I don't have_ time _for this_ , he thought impatiently, even as he emerged from his office and almost walked straight into the large figure blocking his way.

"Can I-Garak! What are you doing here?," Julian asked, perplexed. As a rule, Garak never came to the Infirmary. Frightened of doctors, or of his time spent there last year; either way, this was...unexpected. Now he stood, arms folded across his broad chest, an infinitely patient smile curving his lips.

"Doctor," Garak said knowingly, "you've forgotten again, haven't you?"

Julian's eyebrows converged above his nose before his face blanched, then flushed with embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, Garak," Julian whispered, pleading with his huge eyes for understanding.

Garak immediately understood, all too well. "Another emergency? That's the fourth this month alone," he muttered, trying to keep his disappointment from showing.

Julian rubbed his throbbing head tiredly. "Yes. I've been patching people up for what seems like years. First the ship colliding with the docking port a few weeks ago, then the Danubian virus that Pakled freighter brought on board last week, then the system malfunctions...and I've forgotten to eat occasionally, I'm afraid to admit," Julian rattled on, glancing around at the Infirmary, wondering why it suddenly looked strange.

Garak put a hand on his shoulder, peering at him intently. "Doctor, you are in no shape to be up. You need rest," he chided him.

Julian brushed at his hand, but it refused to budge. "Garak, I'm fine. I just need..." he began his protest, then the room spun. If not for Garak's steadying hand, Julian would have been a crumbled heap on the floor.

"Sleep," Garak finished for him as he held his shoulders firmly.

Julian blinked at him, focusing on his face; the eye-ridges blurring into whirling and dancing patterns. "Maybe I could use...a brief rest," Julian admitted as his head bobbed. "I have a cot in the back of my office," he muttered as his eyes drooped shut.

Garak swung one of the doctor's arms around his neck, and, holding him upright, helped him to his office.

***

Julian rolled over, wondering what time it was. He blinked, wondering why he was in his office. Then he remembered. The bulkhead. O'Brien and the others. And Garak. Something about Garak...

"Doctor, so glad you're awake," came a pleasant voice, and Julian sat up.

Garak was seated at his desk, browsing through his computer messages. "Garak," the doctor said with some surprise. "What are you doing here?"

Garak turned to Julian with a bright smile and explained, "Taking care of you, what else? Someone had to make sure you returned to duty on time. I was just checking your schedule," he added as he turned back to the terminal. "You're going to be a very busy man the next few weeks," he observed in a cool, detached voice.

Julian puzzled over that for a bit, then realization snapped him fully awake. "I will make sure to schedule our lunches, Garak," Julian promised, but Garak wouldn't look up at him.

"You don't have them scheduled now," he thought he heard Garak mutter.

Julian closed his eyes wearily. He had people depending on him constantly; emergencies pouring in almost once a week, Langton wasn't responding to any treatment he tried, and now he had been neglecting Garak..."I've never had to before. I've looked forward to our lunches together," Julian tried to pacify the other man.

"And now...?" Garak asked.

Julian frowned. "Now, what?" he asked, confused.

"You said ' _looked_ forward to.' What about now, Doctor? Don't you look forward to them now?" Garak asked with an air of nonchalance, studying the computer screen intently.

Julian recognized the hurt and needed assurances in those questions. He had felt those same things himself, all to much. "Garak, you're a good friend. I've _looked_ forward, _look_ forward, and will _continue_ to look forward to our lunches together. I'm truly sorry."

Garak jumped at the light touch on his shoulder. He had been staring at the screen, full of Julian's life, and hadn't sensed him coming up behind him until he placed his hand on his shoulder. "I know you are," Garak whispered back, and raised his hand tentatively to cover Julian's. They stood like that for several minutes, each lost in thought.

Julian broke the silence with, "Garak, are you hungry?"

Garak blinked up at him, a smile slowly making its way across his features. "Indeed I am, my dear Doctor. The Replimat?" he suggested.

Julian bit his lip, hesitating. Garak saw his hesitation and sighed. "I know. Foolish thinking. You need to stay close to your patients. I can settle for Infirmary food," he offered graciously.

One corner of Julian's mouth quirked. "Not if you've tasted it lately," he muttered under his breath.

"I'm sorry?" Garak asked as Julian walked over to the replicator.

"Nothing. I just asked what you'd like," Julian covered hastily, a smile tugging his mouth.

"Ah-huh," Garak answered disbelievingly, but obliged the doctor.

***

"Julian, if I have to spend ONE MORE DAY in here, I'll go berserk!" Miles complained for the hundredth time. That day.

Julian ran the scanner over his leg, his eyes flicking over the readouts. Satisfied with what he saw, he put the scanner down and smiled at his patient. "Miles, you can go home this afternoon. I'm tired of your bellyaching, and I'll have you know, the Infirmary replicator was fixed by you last month," he informed him with a raised eyebrow, referring to his constant complaints about the food.

Miles broke into a grin, happy to be released, then his expression changed to one of outraged indignation. "I couldn't have programmed the replicators in here to fix that...that...stuff," he finished lamely as Julian's nurse came over and whispered something in Julian's ear.

"Chief, I'll be right back," Julian said hastily and went with Sedi. "What happened?" he demanded, grabbing a hypo full of triethelcortezine and pressing it into Langton's neck.

"He went into some kind of neural shock, Doctor," Sedi informed him.

"Damn," he muttered. "His neurochemistry is just so different from anything I've ever seen. I have no idea how to help him," Julian whispered to himself.

Sedi gave no indication that she heard the doctor's self-chastising. "What do you want to do?" she asked, looking to him for the answers.

Julian was leaning heavily against the biobed, supported by his two hands. His arms were two taunt wires, shaking from the sheer force of his frustration. "Nothing. I can't do a damn thing," he muttered before he turned away disgustedly. He went back into his office and locked the door.

***

"Doctor Bashir? Are you in here?" The soft voice barely registered. Julian remained on his cot, too tired to even open his eyes.

The door slid open and bright light streamed into the dark office. Julian raised his arm to hold off the offending light. "Whaddya want?" he asked gruffly.

Odo stepped into the light, blocking most of it from Julian's face. He got his first look at the Doctor in days. He couldn't say he was impressed: he looked like hell warmed over. Uniform crinkled, stubble on his normally smooth, youthful face, hair in disarray, eyes bloodshot. "I want to talk to Doctor Bashir. Is he still within you somewhere?," Odo asked, equally gruff.

A harsh laugh, followed by, "I'm sorry. He's not available at the moment. Come back some other time," and Julian turned his back to the Constable.

Odo could tolerate a few things; unfortunately, the brush-off was not one of them. He strode directly to the doctor's form and physically lifted him off the cot.

"Hey," Julian protested, but only put up a slight struggle. His head lobbed to one side, a crooked grin on his drunken face, and Odo crinkled his nose.

"You're drunk," he observed.

Another harsh sound, accompanied by a chortle. "You betcha. Doctor's prognosis? Intoxication by ingestion. Treatment? Another bottle of Romulan Ale." He smiled proudly at his own joke.

Odo was not amused. "Doctor, I have someone who would like to see you, but not in this condition."

Julian sighed sadly, regarding the Constable with red-rimmed eyes. He suddenly patted Odo's smooth cheek. "Hmm well, if you want to see me in another condition, you'll have to come back later," he laughed again.

Odo shook him, causing his head to bob like a toy. "Doctor, there is a man dying out there, and you have to help him!" Odo insisted.

Julian took a quick breath, letting out a shuddered one. "I can't," he moaned mournfully, staring down at the floor.

Odo scoffed, "What do you mean, you can't? You're the doctor!"

Julian's head snapped up, eyes drilling into the Constable's. He shoved Odo's hands away and glared at him. "I'm the doctor! I'm supposed to help everyone!" he snapped back sarcastically. "Well, I _can't_ , do you understand me? I _can't_ HELP _him_! I _can't_. I can't...help...him." Julian's outrage died down into a helpless stupor. He slumped back down on the cot, utter defeat making his face look years older. Decades.

Odo looked down at him for a minute, then tapped his commbadge. "Odo to Sisko. We have a problem in the Infirmary."

***

"Drink this."

Julian shoved the mug away.

"Drink!" Lieutenant Jadzia Dax insisted, and Julian was forced to take the steaming coffee. He stared down into the liquid depths, seeing his own mutilated reflection in there. Drowning. He shuddered and set the mug down as far away as his arm would reach.

"Julian, when are you going to tell me what's wrong?" Dax asked, settling back in Julian's chair.

They sat in his office; Sisko hadn't been able to get through to the young man, but Dax had that infinite patience that could withstand the Doctor's reluctance.

He continued to stare at the floor with horrified eyes; at a sight only he could see.

He was 10 years old again, on Invernia 2. The little girl kept pointing to the cave entrance. He tried to explain to her that his father had gone for help, but she couldn't understand a word he said. She was muttering a language he didn't understand, on a planet he had arrived on the day before. He held her hand tightly, offering her what comfort he could. Her skin felt like fire; her eyes were glassy. She tossed her head, thrashing around on the hard dirt floor. Julian didn't know what to do. He held her as she held on to her life, still occasionally pointing out into the raging ionic storm. With morning came the calm after the storm and Julian's father with an Invernian man. All they found was a dead little girl and a little boy, hugging her to him so tightly it took their combined strength to pry them apart.

Julian shook himself from that image. Every once in awhile, when a treatment proved difficult, as Lieutenant Langton's was, his mind dwelled back on Invernia 2, and that little girl he could have saved, if only he had known.

He stood up, startling Dax, who had just reached out to put her hand on his shoulder. "Julian, what is it? You have to tell someone," she insisted.

Julian shook his head slightly, the first acknowledgment that he had heard her since she came to him, almost two hours ago. He moved to the far wall, staring at the plaques lining it. "Dax," he said hoarsely.

"Yes?" she inquired softly, coming up behind him.

He reached up to run two fingers along his medical diploma. He picked it up, seemingly weighing it in his hands. After a moment he turned to Dax. "I don't deserve this," he said quietly, offering it to her.

Dax stepped closer and took it, and seeing what it was, stared incredulously at him. "Julian! You are one of the most qualified doctors I know! You deserve this. More importantly, you _need_ this. It's your life's ambition." She tried to give it back, but he pushed it away, shaking his head emphatically.

"No. I don't deserve it. I don't know enough. I didn't learn everything there was to know. I can't help him. I can't even help her..." Tears were falling down his unshaven face before he knew it.

Dax blinked at the sudden rush of emotion. She hesitated a split second before enveloping him in her arms. "Shh, Julian, it's all right," she whispered, stroking his hair.

The closeness, the gentle rocking, brought him back to Invernia 2."I won't let you die. Just hang on. Help is on the way. You're not gonna die," he whispered over and over to a confused Dax.

When he quieted and she felt him slacken in her arms, she set him down on the cot. His head fell to his chest, deep asleep. With a hand under his neck she lay him down, tucking his legs up on the cot and settling herself for a long night vigil.

***

"OOohhmmm," Julian murmured, holding his head. He opened his eyes slowly, even the soft light making him squint. His eyes roamed around his office, trying to place his disjointed memories. His eyes fell to Dax, and an image of her on Invernia 2 entered his mind. He squeezed his eyes shut; willing that image away. He sat up gingerly, holding his pounding head in his hands.

"Need this?" Dax asked, at once by his side and pressing the hypo against his neck before he could say a word.

The pain subsided, and he turned to her with bloodshot, but thankful, eyes. "Thank you, Dax," he whispered. "You were truly a good friend last night." He felt terrible; she had stayed in that chair all night; and from experience, he knew it wasn't very comfortable.

She patted his hand, smiling tenderly. "Just remember this the next time you decide to go off on a drinking binge. Call me to join you," she joked.

He managed a wry smile. "I haven't drank that much in I don't know how long," he admitted sheepishly.

"Probably since finals week your last year at Academy," Jadzia teased him gently.

He didn't hear her. Bits and pieces of the previous night were surfacing. "Dax, I don't remember much," he hedged.

"About...?" she prodded him when it looked like he wasn't going to elaborate.

He searched her face; hurt pinching his handsome features. "About what happened last night. About a lot of things. And some things I just can't forget," he moaned softly.

Dax studied his expression; desperate, bordering on hysterical. It was obvious he needed to talk, and Dax had an idea about what. He had mumbled in his fitful sleep all night long. "You're talking about her, aren't you?" she asked, watching his expression carefully.

He froze; suddenly scared about someone learning the truth about her. "What are you talking about? What little girl?" he choked out, his gaze shifting nervously around his office.

"I didn't say she was a little girl, Julian. Who was she? What happened to her?" she asked as she lightly touched his shoulder.

Every muscle tensed; he pressed his lips together but they still trembled slightly. His eyes were focused on some distant point.

She kept her hand on his shoulder, afraid he would bolt for the door if she let go. "I know you tried to help her, but you couldn't," she prompted him.

He whispered something so softly she could only see his lips moving. "Julian?" she prodded him gently.

He was panicking; a thin bead of sweat worked its way down the side of his face as his breathing came in shallow bursts. "I..I.. she was...and I couldn't...she tried to tell me, but I didn't know..." he buried his face in his hands.

Jadzia waited until he composed himself before she said anything. "Julian. Not everyone can know everything. I'm sure you did everything you could," she assured him.

Julian was off the cot before she could blink. He slammed his hands down on his desk, gripping the edge until his knuckles turned white. "NO! I did _nothing_! I sat there! She died in my arms, and I didn't know I could save her! I didn't know..." his voice broke again, and he leaned heavily on desk.

Jadzia put her arm around his shoulders, comforting him.

He shrugged off her touch. "I don't deserve comforting," he said coldly. "Her father did. All I could do was stand there and watch as my father handed the man his little girl. He fell to the ground with her in his arms, crying over her lifeless body. He started chanting; I couldn't understand the words. I learned much later that he was saying, 'So young is she; so old am I. Take my kubbik in her place. She has traveled so little; I have traveled so far. Let her walk once again.' When she didn't wake up, he howled pitifully. It was the most lonesome, anguished sound I had ever heard. My father and I left on a freighter an hour later, never to return." Julian's voice had grown softer as he told his story, he was speaking on a breath by the time he finished. His arms had wrapped around himself, trying to physically block the emotions from his heart.

Jadzia put her arm tenderly around his shoulders once again, and this time, he permitted her touch.

"Julian, how old were you?" she asked gently.

He stiffened, then answered quietly, "Ten."

She inhaled sharply, not realizing this was from something so long ago. "You were ten, and you could have helped a little girl, but you didn't know...?" she broke off, not sure what he was trying to tell her.

"About the treatment. A simple treatment, from a plant growing right outside the cave. She tried to tell me, but I didn't understand her. She kept pointing to the entrance, but I thought she meant my father had left. I just didn't know..." his voice trailed off again, and Dax tried to make sense of what he was telling her.

"Your father left you alone with a sick girl? To get help?"

He nodded. "He found the cave, the only shelter from the ionic storm for kilometers. He left us in that dark cave with not even a torch to light. She was tossing about, her eyes glassed over with fever. She was muttering something, I didn't know what. When she stopped moving, hours later, I picked her up and held her. I rocked her, feeling that she was cooler. I thought her fever had broken. I thought she was cured. I didn't know she...she," Julian's voice failed him again as the image in the cave overtook him.

"Oh, Julian," Dax murmured.

He blinked the tears back and continued. "My father and the villager found us like that. Me, still rocking her, assuring her everything would be all right. They had to pry us apart. I wasn't going to let go. I would protect her. I would save her. The Invernian man took one look at her and said something to my father. He paled, avoiding my questions about what had happened to her. I tugged at his sleeve, demanding to know what he had said. My father turned to me with eyes so cold and said, 'She could have been treated with the herbs outside the cave. You could have saved her.'"

Julian fell silent as Jadzia's eyes narrowed. "Your father said _you_ could have saved her? He blamed you for her death?" Jadzia may have spoken softly, but her voice was trembling with barely contained rage.

Julian was blind to it all. He was still that 10 year old boy, taking the entire blame for a needless death. "Anywhere in the area outside the cave. That's what she was pointing to. She was trying to tell me about the herbs. But I didn't understand her. I can tell you anything you want to know about Invernia 2 now. The culture, the language, the medical history. I know everything there is to know about that planet. It was the first thing I did after returning to Earth. I vowed that I would make myself an expert on Invernian history." Julian was hypnotizing himself with his voice, caught up in the old memories; the old pain.

Jadzia grabbed him by the shoulders, spinning him around to face her. "Julian, listen to me! Julian!" She grabbed his chin and forced him to look her in the eye. She blinked at the blankness she saw there. "Julian, what happened to that little girl was not your fault. No one should blame a child for that. Your father was wrong. It wasn't your fault. It was no one's fault. It was an accident. A terrible, horrible accident. But it was not your fault," she emphasized, hoping she was getting through to him.

"My father is never wrong," Julian stated automatically, causing Jadzia to do a doubletake.

"What?" she whispered disbelievingly. She hoped she had heard him wrong.

He repeated, "My father is never wrong. He's always right, and I'm always wrong. I should have saved that girl. I failed." Julian was beginning to scare Jadzia. He was repeating this like an automaton, a practiced speech that he had told himself hundreds of times. Or someone else had told him.

"Julian, who told you your father was always right?" Julian's eyes shifted to her, but looked straight through her. She shuddered at the coldness.

"My father is never wrong," he replied in a flat tone.

"What the hell did he do to you?" Jadzia muttered under her breath. Trying to read his emotions was getting her nowhere. She needed logic to get through to him.

"Julian, did you know you could have helped that girl?"

He wavered for a minute before answering. "No," he whispered.

"Did you know what her disease was?" she asked.

"No," he whispered a little louder, shaking slightly.

"Did you have the knowledge of that planet's vegetation to pick the right plant to treat her?" Jadzia forged ahead, hoping to break through the years of mental training Julian had forced on himself.

"N-n-no," he stammered, shaking harder. Tears started to sneak out the corners of his eyes.

"Would any other ten year old know what to do for a dying girl?" Jadzia risked asking.

Julian blinked hard, nearly hyperventilating. "N-no," caught in his throat.

"Julian, if no other ten year old would have known how to help her, how could you? You were just a little boy yourself, on a strange planet, with a girl whose language you didn't know how to speak. No one could have expected you to know how to save that little girl," Jadzia insisted, squeezing his shoulders tight.

A choked sob came from him, and he nearly collapsed.

Dax caught him and held him tight. "It wasn't your fault, it's not your fault," she whispered to him, stroking his hair.

***

Dax puzzled over the gifts that were being left in her quarters. They were very unusual, but beautiful; a delicate bone carving, a tiny holographic image of a mountain range, jagged peaks rising into a lilac sky, and an intricately carved Ynuuth, the symbol of a Joined Trill. Not that she minded the anonymity, but she was by nature curious. And her curiosity had developed her investigative skills to a fine point.

She went to the Infirmary with the latest gift on a hunch. Julian was absorbed in the data on his terminal when she entered. She placed the flowering plant in front of him, crossing her arms as she did so.

He took one look at it and a smile broke out on his face. He glanced to her with an impish twinkle in his eye.

"So?" she asked, raising her eyebrow and grinning.

"So, what?" Julian grinned back.

She smiled knowingly. "So, I know this came from you. I'd like to know why."

He sobered a bit. "It's called H'kka; it's an herb that grows only on Invernia 2," he said in a controlled voice.

Something clicked in Jadzia's mind; Invernia 2 was where Julian...

He looked up at her, pain in his toffee-colored eyes. "An herb that could have saved a little girl's life. On Invernia 2, when a person dies, their spirit, or kubbik, is said to inhabit all the living things around them. I had that brought from the planet, from right outside the cave. I'd like to think she's...there," he finished quietly, his eyes now fixed on the little pot in front of him.

Dax was silent; she was moved by Julian's gift, in more ways than one. "Julian, you should keep this. You would take better care of it, I know. And, I think it belongs to you," she added quietly, touching his shoulder lightly. "Besides, you've given me enough already. Where did you find the Ynuuth? It's exquisite," she changed the subject neatly.

To her surprise, a slight blush crept along Julian's cheeks. "Um, I made it," he admitted. He stole a glance at her, and was astonished to see her smiling broadly. "It's not that bad, is it?" he asked worriedly.

"No! It's beautiful! I was just trying to picture you carving that. What did you use, a laser scalpel?" she teased, and laughed as the blush deepened on his face. "Oh, you didn't!"

He sniffed indignantly. "I used the means I had. I'm quite proud of it myself," he said with the air of ownership.

Jadzia's laughter died away and she smiled at him sweetly. "It _is_ beautiful, and I thank you. But why all the gifts?"

To her surprise, his face lit up with excitement. "Part of Invernian culture is to give items that have personal value as a sign of thanks. The Ul'th Mountain Range hologram came from Invernia 2, as did the plant. The bone carving is from Commander Data; he gave it to me before the Enterprise left DS Nine last year. You know where the Ynuuth came from," he grinned cheekily at her. Then his expression changed slightly and he took her hand. "You helped me more than you realize, Jadzia. After last night, I can finally see past the hurt and concentrate on helping people who I can still help. I've learned it's okay to not know everything; I just have to research before I attempt anything. Lieutenant Langton is recovering nicely because of it, and wouldn't be if not for you." He could see he was embarrassing her. He smiled sympathetically at her. "I know Trills don't like to be fussed over, but this is it, I promise." He stood up and kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Thank you, Jadzia," he whispered.

Her smile wavered for an instant, then she regained her composure. "We're even, Julian. You saved my life, I saved yours," she said mildly.

Julian grinned. "And together, we saved Langton. Come on, you have to see this," he insisted, walking toward the recovery room and waving her to follow.

***

"Lieutenant Langton, I am hereby releasing you from this Infirmary. And I fully expect you to remain outside of it for the remainder of your stay," Julian grinned.

Lieutenant Langton smiled back, her silver eyes sparkling. "I'm just sorry I couldn't tell you sooner about my cycle. As soon as I was off the transport, Chief O'Brien called me to help with the bulkhead. I had no time to inform you of my...impeding change," she said, lowering her eyes in slight embarrassment. Her long lashes brushed her cheeks and her antennae bobbed low.

Julian's hand delicately brushed one upright. "It's not your fault. It's mine. I should have checked your people's history to know you were merely initiating your third cycle," he explained.

He was rewarded with a coo and a slight brush with the woman's newly webbed appendage.

Julian watched the new Lieutenant _Linna_ Langton leave the Infirmary with a sigh of relief. He turned back to his station, puzzled over the buzzing that started. He chuckled as he saw a message flash across his terminal.

"If you are done changing my customers, your presence is requested in the Replimat."

Julian shook his head and went to meet Garak for lunch.

The End


End file.
